Natick technology tested at Devens base camp

From a water reuse system to energy-efficient shelters to an improved generator system, scientists from Natick Soldier Systems Center are using a one-year-old camp at Devens to experiment with technology and ensure it will work in the field for military personnel.

U.S. Army Spc. Stephanie Engers couldn’t tell she was taking a shower with recycled water from a fellow soldier’s shower, but she knows the experience could help improve base camps throughout the world.

Engers, a member of the 115th Military Police Company, is one of hundreds of soldiers who have tested new technology at Fort Devens’ Base Camp Integration Laboratory. The site features two 150-soldier camps – one that mirrors an existing camp in the field and one that scientists from Natick Soldier Systems Center use for experiments, seeking to reduce water and energy use.

"I think it’s very important," Engers said of staying at the testing facility.

From the water reuse system to energy-efficient shelters to an improved generator system, scientists have used the one-year-old camp to experiment with technology and ensure it will work in the field. Some of the technology has already been deployed, engineers said.

"Over that past year this laboratory here has played a key role in helping us develop solutions to support our war fighters," said Assistant Secretary of the Army Katherine Hammack.

Hammack, Assistant Secretary of Defense Sharon Burke and other military leaders, soldiers and contractors toured the camp Wednesday.

Kevin Fahey, program executive officer for combat support and combat service support, said work at the base camp and Natick Soldier Systems Center is important even if budgets decline because it enables the Army to continue advancing technology to be "only a procurement away" the next time soldiers deploy.

Engineer William Singleton showed the group a microgrid generator system that results in about 30 percent fuel savings.

Generators traditionally are set up to power a specific function. But, Natick engineers tested a new system at the lab that links six generators together, creating a grid where any generator can power any load. The grid monitors power demand and shuts down unneeded generators, Singleton said.

Nearby, engineers showed how modifications to a shelter reduced the amount of energy needed to keep soldiers cool by adding solar shades, improving liners and adding a door that closes behind someone entering and exiting. In prior designs, soldiers had to zip the doors shut, a task that was often ignored.

The shower water reuse system, which relies on a series of filters, can process 12,000 gallons of water per day, reusing 75 percent of that water for another shower, said chemical engineer Ryan Eckert.

Lab officials hope overall to reduce water consumption at the base camp by 75 percent and fuel use by 35 percent.

Those reductions mean less supply conveys needing to travel through hostile terrain and fend off IED and other attacks, said Lt. Gen. Raymond Mason, a U.S. Army deputy chief of staff.

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"If we can reduce those convoys, our soldiers and the rest of the greater joint team is then less exposed," Mason said. "….We think that by reducing the demand and usage of fuel and water will make use even more effective on the battlefield."

(Brian Benson can be reached at 508-626-3964 or bbenson@wickedlocal.com.)